Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva warned yesterday that Rohingya boatpeople would be “pushed out of the country” as part of a crackdown on illegal immigration, refusing to buckle to pressure over reports the army had dumped them on the high seas and left them to die.

Mr Abhisit said the new crackdown would target both the stateless Muslim Rohingya and the brokers who lured them to set off from Myanmar and Bangladesh.

“We have to solve the illegal immigrant problem otherwise it will affect our security, economy and the opportunities of Thai labourers,” he said. “We will push them out of the country.”

The Foreign Ministry is investigating after a media storm erupted following the South China Morning Post (SEHK: 0583, announcements, news) ‘s first report last week that the army had been detaining Rohingya migrants on an island then towing them back out to sea. Survivors who washed ashore in India’s Andaman Islands told security officials there of being beaten, forced out of Thailand at gunpoint and abandoned in unpowered boats. Hundreds have died.

Yesterday, Mr Abhisit did not state if he condemned or condoned such actions – but he echoed Thai army fears that the influx of Rohingya had put Thailand’s security at risk. He has yet to agree to the demands of the United Nations’ refugee agency, which on Tuesday requested access to a group of Rohingya who it believed were still in Thai custody. The UNHCR said it suspected boatpeople were being held on Koh Sai Daeng island, but a visit by the Post found it to be newly deserted.

Official figures show Rohingya arrivals steadily growing over the past three years, reaching 4,886 last winter. The calm seas of December and January herald the key sailing season, with hundreds still thought to be at sea.

“Many [Rohingya] came … more than enough to set up a community. We will be strict in cracking down on groups of people who facilitate illegal immigrants coming into Thailand,” Mr Abhisit said. “Our problem is human trafficking. We have to investigate this issue and make our coastal security system more robust as there are multiple agencies looking after our coastline.”

Thai army officials stationed in Ranong confirmed in interviews with the Post on Wednesday that they were funding the training of villagers to round up the Rohingya, provision them, fix their boats and send them back out to sea. They denied Rohingya were held against their will, although a photo of Koh Sai Daeng has shown detainees held behind barbed wire. The army also denies Rohingya were sent to sea unwillingly.

Prasong Nurack, investigating senator, said the government had to be sure that its actions met UN standards on human rights. “We must find the right balance of security and human rights … Thailand is a country that has always stressed the importance of human rights and we have to keep to that,” he said after meeting army officers in Ranong.

Greg Torode in Ranong and Agence France-Presse
Jan 23, 2009